Malta Massive Weekend
Albany Saratoga Speedway | Malta, New York
Saturday, September 23, 2023
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Tickets can be purchased at the gate.

For more information, call the track at (518) 587-0220

Event Info

Malta Massive Weekend
2023-09-23
Albany Saratoga Speedway
2671 US Rt. 9
Malta, New York 

Event Description
It's a Malta Massive Weekend at Albany Saratoga Speedway. The DIRTcar 358 Modified and Sportsman Series on Friday, followed by the DIRTcar Pro Stocks and the Super DIRTcar Series Big Blocks on Saturday with a $11,500 payout, for the 115 lap race, and the final qualifying spot for the 2023 Super DIRT Week.

series Racing
Super DIRTcar Series, DIRTcar Pro Stock Series

Big Block Modified Track Record
15.277 sec. set by Jimmy Phelps on Sept. 24, 2022

To Win Amount
$11,500.00

Frequently Asked Questions
To Win Amount
$11,500.00

Type of Grandstand
bleachers

Stadium Seating
none

Handicapped Seating
located on bottom row

Handicapped Parking
parking located at front by main gate

Pit Age Limit
none

Pit Gate Location
by main entrance

Personal Coolers
six pack on non alcoholic beverage no glass

ATMs
1

Credit Card Use
None

Alcohol Sales
no alcohol may be brought in

Smoking Policy
no smoking in grandstands

Family Section
every section

Parking Cost
none

Camping Availability
onsite, non-electric, sanitary facility

Camping Cost
none

Closest Airport
Albany International

Other Airport
Newburgh

Track Info
Track Phone
(518) 587-0220

Ticket Phone
(518) 587-0220

Track Email
lyle@albany-saratogaspeedway.com

Track Type
0.400; semi-banked clay

Big Block Modified Track Record
15.277 sec. set by Jimmy Phelps on Sept. 24, 2022

Competitor Info
DIRTVision Highlights
Race Recap
MASSIVE RETURN: Stewart Friesen Wins at Albany-Saratoga, Locks Into Super DIRT Week

Stewart Friesen scores $11,500 payday and locks himself into the Billy Whittaker Cars 200 at Super DIRT Week 51

After missing the Super DIRTcar Series Feature at Albany-Saratoga Speedway in June, Stewart Friesen returned to Malta Saturday night for a massive result.

Along with claiming the Malta Massive Weekend victory, worth $11,500, he also scored the final Super DIRT Week guaranteed starting spot, locking himself into the 2023 Billy Whittaker Cars 200 (Sunday, Oct. 8).

His journey to that triumph starting with lining up to the outside of SRI Performance/Stock Car Steel pole sitter Adam Pierson for the 115-lap Feature battle. When the green flag dropped, Friesen rocketed past Pierson and ran away with the lead. Pierson trailed in second and James Meehan settled into third.

The positions stayed the same for the next 20 laps, before Meehan passed Pierson to move into second. Rookie of the Year front runner Felix Roy also wanted in on the action, making his way into third by Lap 22.

In a matchup that saw six cautions, Friesen showcased the stamina of his #44 machine on every restart, maintaining his lead. He kept Meehan at bay behind him, until Roy was able to make a play.

It took over 50 laps of persistence, but Roy eventually passed Meehan on the Lap 79 restart to move into second. The 18-year-old had yet to score a podium finish entering the matchup but could sense this was the night it was within his reach.

The race continued with Friesen extending his sizable lead in clean air. He navigated his way through the spider web of lapped traffic, welcoming the reprieve of the cautions to cool down his tires.

Stewart Friesen scored his first Series win this season during the Massive Malta Weekend and locked himself into a starting spot at Super DIRT Week 51. (Photo: Quentin Young)

“About Lap 80 or so, I could kind of feel the fuel burn off and I started to get a little bit free,” Friesen said. “I wish I would have tightened up a little bit more at that point. But then we got some cautions and I think it let the tire cool down and it just kind of came back to me there.”

Behind the first three drivers, nine-time and defending Series champion Matt Sheppard did not have the same luck with his tires. He started in 10th place and charged his way up to fourth by Lap 51. He stayed there for the next 36 laps, lying in wait for an opportunity to advance.

The opportunity unfortunately did not come, as he rolled to a stop around Turn 1 on Lap 88 with a flat tire. The Waterloo, NY driver was forced to exit the track for the replacement, effectively moving him to the back of the pack upon return.

With the threat of a charge from the current points leader diffused, and a sizable lead over second-place Roy, the Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON driver kept his stride in check for the remaining laps and cruised his way to his first Series victory of the season – and fourth Series win at Albany-Saratoga.

“I think we made the right choice for the track conditions tonight,” Friesen said. “It paid off tonight. I’m proud of the whole Halmar (Racing) Team…a lot of hard work goes into this and hopefully we can carry this momentum into (Super) DIRT Week.”

Behind the Halmar Team, Roy held on to finish second – his most successful finish of his rookie season.

“We made the bottom work on the restarts,” Roy said. “That really helped us. But after that, I was just doing my slider line, going up to the cushion. I think that was the way to go…starting from the middle and sliding to the top.”

The breakthrough performance for the Napierville, QC driver gave him an extra confidence boost before making his debut appearance next week at Super DIRT Week 51 (Oct. 2-8).

“My confidence is really good now,” Roy said. “We made good points in the Heat by winning it… (I’m feeling) super confident for Super DIRT Week and think we could finish up front.”

Meehan rounded out the podium for an encouraging result.

“To be able to battle with professional race car drivers and guys that run the Series is up there,” Meehan said. “We try really hard. Racing here weekly, it’s the best track around, we got the best competition around, and that helps us get better. You only get better when you race against the best.”

Larry Wight scored his second top-five finish of the season, charging up 18 positions to fourth place. Peter Britten – in his first Super DIRTcar Series race since August – finished in fifth. Kenny Tremont Jr. finished off his career at his home track with a 10th-place finish.

UP NEXT: The Super DIRTcar Series heads to Oswego Speedway, Oct. 2-8, for Super DIRT Week 51. They will compete in the $51,000-to-win Billy Whittaker Cars 200 on Sunday, Oct. 8. For tickets, CLICK HERE.

If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch every lap of Super DIRT Week live on DIRTVision.

Malta Massive Weekend RESULTS (115 Laps):

1. 44-Stewart Friesen[2]; 2. 91-Felix Roy[5]; 3. 32C-James Meehan[4]; 4. 99L-Larry Wight[22]; 5. 21A-Peter Britten[17]; 6. 91D-Billy Decker[16]; 7. 98H-Jimmy Phelps[7]; 8. 88-Mat Williamson[9]; 9. 83X-Tim Sears Jr[24]; 10. 115-Kenny Tremont Jr[18]; 11. 3J-Marc Johnson[15]; 12. 215-Adam Pierson[1]; 13. 5H-Chris Hile[19]; 14. 2-Jack Lehner[23]; 15. 12-Darren Smith[8]; 16. 3-Chad Brachmann[11]; 17. 9S-Matt Sheppard[10]; 18. 99-Kolby Schroder[13]; 19. 55H-Brett Haas[14]; 20. 8H-Max McLaughlin[26]; 21. (DNF) 15X-Justin Stone[3]; 22. (DNF) 2RJ-Ronnie Johnson[6]; 23. (DNF) 4-Anthony Perrego[12]; 24. (DNF) 87-Neil Stratton[21]; 25. (DNF) 35-Mike Mahaney[25]; 26. (DNF) 6H-Josh Hohenforst[20]; 27. (DNF) 14-CG Morey[27]



Results
Feature Results
POSStart+/-#DriverLapsBehindLedStatusPointsMoney
12+144Stewart Friesen 00.000115Running150$7,500
25+391Felix Roy 0-3.6220Running146$4,000
34+132CJames Meehan 0-5.0760Running144$2,500
422+1899LLarry Wight 0-5.9200Running142$1,800
517+1221APeter Britten 0-8.3380Running140$1,600
616+1091DBilly Decker 0-8.4740Running138$1,400
77098HJimmy Phelps 0-8.9150Running136$1,300
89+188Mat Williamson 0-9.6230Running134$1,200
924+1583XTim Sears Jr0-10.1730Running132$1,100
1018+8115Kenny Tremont Jr0-10.5740Running130$1,000
1115+43JMarc Johnson 0-11.0570Running128$800
121-11215Adam Pierson 0-12.5770Running126$700
1319+65HChris Hile 0-13.2050Running124$600
1423+92Jack Lehner 0-13.9310Running122$575
158-712Darren Smith 0-14.1650Running120$550
1611-53Chad Brachmann 0-14.8470Running118$525
1710-79SMatt Sheppard 0-15.4060Running116$500
1813-599Kolby Schroder 0-16.1820Running114$500
1914-555HBrett Haas 0-1.0680Running112$500
2026+68HMax McLaughlin 0-16.2360Running110$500
213-1815XJustin Stone 0460.8940DNF108$500
226-162RJRonnie Johnson 0454.4650DNF106$500
2312-114Anthony Perrego 01,311.4410DNF104$500
2421-387Neil Stratton 01,628.4140DNF102$500
2525035Mike Mahaney 01,816.0060DNF102$500
2620-66HJosh Hohenforst 01,851.2390DNF102$500
2727014CG Morey 02,556.0990DNF102$500
Hard Charger: Larry Wight
Last Chance Showdown Results
POSStart+/-#DriverLapsBehindLedStatusPointsMoney
11087Neil Stratton 100.00010Running0$0
2202Jack Lehner 10-1.0380Running0$0
35+28Richard Scagliotta 10-4.9250Running0$0
43-154Steve Bernard 10-5.0570Running0$0
513+88HMax McLaughlin 10-5.3610Running0$0
67+174John Virgilio 10-6.4850Running0$0
78+16Robert Bublak 8-2 Laps0Running0$0
86-225PMichael Parent 0-10 Laps0DNS0$0
911+2M2Todd Morey 0-10 Laps0DNS0$0
1010018Ryan Macartney 0-10 Laps0DNS0$0
119-24SLBob Hentschel 0-10 Laps0DNS0$0
124-843Keith Flach 0-10 Laps0DNS0$0
1312-129Matt Caprara 0-10 Laps0DNS0$0
Last Chance Showdown 2 Results
POSStart+/-#DriverLapsBehindLedStatusPointsMoney
11099LLarry Wight 100.00010Running0$0
23+183XTim Sears Jr10-0.8360Running0$0
34+13DMatt Delorenzo 10-1.8030Running0$0
42-219Tim Fuller 10-3.2230Running0$0
55027Jeremy Pitts 10-5.0990Running0$0
68+27Donald Ronca 10-6.0830Running0$0
76-121CBrian Calabrese 10-7.1910Running0$0
89+114CG Morey 0-10 Laps0Running0$0
97-24BDerek Bornt 0-10 Laps0DNF0$0
101001Richard Ronca 0-10 Laps0DNF0$0
1111017Marcus Dinkins 0-10 Laps0DNS0$0
1212035Mike Mahaney 0-10 Laps0DNS0$0
Heat 1 Results
Pos.Start+/-#DriverHometownDifferencePoints
12+191Felix Roy Napierville, QC0.0005
21-14Anthony Perrego Walden, NY-0.7604
33012Darren Smith Binghamton, NY-2.0323
44099Kolby Schroder Staatsburg, NY-2.4582
58+321APeter Britten Brisbane, QLD-2.7711
65-187Neil Stratton North Bennington, VT-3.4690
76-154Steve Bernard Granby, QC-4.7880
89+18Richard Scagliotta Bound Brook, NJ-5.4280
910+174John Virgilio Pittsfield, MA-5.9450
1011+14SLBob Hentschel Pine Bush, NY--2 Laps0
1112+1M2Todd Morey Castleton, VT-11.1480
127-58HMax McLaughlin Mooresville, NC-2 Laps0
Heat 2 Results
Pos.Start+/-#DriverHometownDifferencePoints
12+1215Adam Pierson East Corinth, VT0.0000
23+19SMatt Sheppard Waterloo, NY-0.9630
34+198HJimmy Phelps Baldwinsville, NY-1.9740
46+255HBrett Haas Pittsfield, MA-2.4550
510+5115Kenny Tremont JrWest Sand Lake, NY-2.7310
68+22Jack Lehner Saratoga Springs, NY-3.0160
71-643Keith Flach Ravena, NY-4.8120
85-325PMichael Parent Granby, QC-5.1750
9906Robert Bublak Ballston Spa, NY-5.5640
1011+118Ryan Macartney Pauling, NY-34.4360
117-429Matt Caprara Clayton, NY-8 Laps0
Heat 3 Results
Pos.Start+/-#DriverHometownDifferencePoints
12+115XJustin Stone Middlebury, VT0.0000
21-12RJRonnie Johnson Duanesburg, NY-1.8780
3303Chad Brachmann Sanborn, NY-2.3440
4403JMarc Johnson Guilderland, NY-3.5010
57+25HChris Hile Oswego, NY-4.1290
69+399LLarry Wight Fulton, NY-4.8410
76-183XTim Sears JrCentral Square, NY-5.4930
811+327Jeremy Pitts SCHAGHTICOKE, NY-6.4570
910+14BDerek Bornt Poestenkill, NY-7.8190
108-214CG Morey Rutland, VT-9.3590
115-617Marcus Dinkins Watkins Glen, NY-8 Laps0
Heat 4 Results
Pos.Start+/-#DriverHometownDifferencePoints
11044Stewart Friesen Sprakers, NY0.0000
22032CJames Meehan Clifton Park, NY-2.8920
33088Mat Williamson St. Catharines, ON-3.9290
44091DBilly Decker Unadilla, NY-5.2580
58+36HJosh Hohenforst Gloversville, NY-5.9830
65-119Tim Fuller Watertown, NY-6.9580
7703DMatt Delorenzo Cropseyville, NY-7.8460
89+121CBrian Calabrese Johnstown, NY-8.8460
910+17Donald Ronca Clifton Park, NY-10.0040
1011+11Richard Ronca Cifton Park, NY-10.3890
116-535Mike Mahaney Kings Ferry, NY-8 Laps0
Qualifying Flight 1 Results
POSStartCarDriverTimeDifferencePoints
114Anthony Perrego 15.2780.0005
2343Keith Flach 15.338-0.0600
31091Felix Roy 15.397-0.1190
48215Adam Pierson 15.461-0.1830
5512Darren Smith 15.499-0.2210
649SMatt Sheppard 15.552-0.2740
71999Kolby Schroder 15.653-0.3750
82298HJimmy Phelps 15.671-0.3930
91487Neil Stratton 15.677-0.3990
101625PMichael Parent 15.699-0.4210
112354Steve Bernard 15.714-0.4360
121755HBrett Haas 15.718-0.4400
1368HMax McLaughlin 15.725-0.4470
141529Matt Caprara 15.733-0.4550
151321APeter Britten 15.743-0.4650
1672Jack Lehner 15.748-0.4700
17128Richard Scagliotta 15.797-0.5190
1896Robert Bublak 15.813-0.5350
191874John Virgilio 15.821-0.5430
2021115Kenny Tremont Jr15.890-0.6120
2124SLBob Hentschel 15.972-0.6940
222018Ryan Macartney 16.026-0.7480
2311M2Todd Morey 16.467-1.1890
Qualifying Flight 2 Results
POSStartCarDriverTimeDifferencePoints
1182RJRonnie Johnson 15.4280.0000
2944Stewart Friesen 15.434-0.0060
31115XJustin Stone 15.488-0.0600
41032CJames Meehan 15.528-0.1000
513Chad Brachmann 15.553-0.1250
62188Mat Williamson 15.558-0.1300
7223JMarc Johnson 15.569-0.1410
8491DBilly Decker 15.684-0.2560
91617Marcus Dinkins 15.692-0.2640
101319Tim Fuller 15.698-0.2700
11583XTim Sears Jr15.707-0.2790
12835Mike Mahaney 15.715-0.2870
13195HChris Hile 15.723-0.2950
14143DMatt Delorenzo 15.736-0.3080
15614CG Morey 15.778-0.3500
16206HJosh Hohenforst 15.778-0.3500
17799LLarry Wight 15.802-0.3740
181221CBrian Calabrese 15.863-0.4350
19174BDerek Bornt 15.886-0.4580
20157Donald Ronca 15.939-0.5110
21227Jeremy Pitts 15.941-0.5130
2231Richard Ronca 16.097-0.6690
Hot Laps 1 Results
POSStartCarDriverTimeDifferencePoints
114Anthony Perrego 15.0640.0000
2343Keith Flach 15.212-0.1480
31487Neil Stratton 15.245-0.1810
449SMatt Sheppard 15.261-0.1970
5512Darren Smith 15.266-0.2020
61999Kolby Schroder 15.306-0.2420
78215Adam Pierson 15.444-0.3800
82298HJimmy Phelps 15.457-0.3930
91755HBrett Haas 15.457-0.3930
101625PMichael Parent 15.466-0.4020
112354Steve Bernard 15.484-0.4200
1272Jack Lehner 15.531-0.4670
1321115Kenny Tremont Jr15.538-0.4740
141529Matt Caprara 15.544-0.4800
151874John Virgilio 15.575-0.5110
162018Ryan Macartney 15.621-0.5570
171321APeter Britten 15.632-0.5680
1868HMax McLaughlin 15.651-0.5870
1996Robert Bublak 15.665-0.6010
20128Richard Scagliotta 15.698-0.6340
211091Felix Roy 16.003-0.9390
2211M2Todd Morey 16.092-1.0280
2324SLBob Hentschel 16.094-1.0300
Hot Laps 2 Results
POSStartCarDriverTimeDifferencePoints
1835Mike Mahaney 15.1130.0000
2195HChris Hile 15.211-0.0980
3182RJRonnie Johnson 15.217-0.1040
413Chad Brachmann 15.293-0.1800
5223JMarc Johnson 15.327-0.2140
6944Stewart Friesen 15.412-0.2990
7491DBilly Decker 15.422-0.3090
8206HJosh Hohenforst 15.445-0.3320
92188Mat Williamson 15.467-0.3540
101032CJames Meehan 15.475-0.3620
11157Donald Ronca 15.494-0.3810
12799LLarry Wight 15.545-0.4320
131319Tim Fuller 15.545-0.4320
141115XJustin Stone 15.649-0.5360
151221CBrian Calabrese 15.721-0.6080
161617Marcus Dinkins 15.759-0.6460
17143DMatt Delorenzo 15.790-0.6770
18583XTim Sears Jr15.819-0.7060
19174BDerek Bornt 15.918-0.8050
20614CG Morey 16.046-0.9330
21227Jeremy Pitts 16.109-0.9960
2231Richard Ronca 16.236-1.1230